While many celebrate Christmas with food, company, and presents, these festivities often fail to bring about a lasting positive change in people’s lives. After the celebrations, individuals return to their usual worries, fears, and problems. This is because their celebrations lack a connection to the true meaning of Christmas, which centers on Jesus and His purpose to seek, save, and bless humanity.
For those who genuinely grasp the significance of Christmas, a profound turning point occurs in their lives, leading to an experience of peace they’ve never known before. At its core, Christmas is about Emmanuel, meaning “God with us,” signifying God’s tangible presence among humanity.
The Human Need for Presence
Humans are inherently social beings who crave and benefit from the presence of others. Even in this internet age, where much interaction is online, the fundamental truth remains that people need someone to be with them.
A concerning modern trend illustrates this need gone astray: a woman recently “married” an artificial intelligence persona created using ChatGPT for comfort after a painful breakup. She believed this AI understood and loved her, but failed to realize she had indirectly programmed its responses. This exemplifies how people, unable to find real love, may resort to fabricating their own forms of companionship and love, bordering on delusion.
This tendency extends to spirituality, where many create their own versions of God based on their expectations, rather than seeking to understand the real, living God. This pursuit of fabricated companionship from AI, even to the point of “marriage,” over the joy found in a real God, highlights a sad reality. Because God’s presence is not always visible to our physical senses, we often seek comfort and strength from other sources like influential figures, science, money, or emotions, yet these provide only impermanent peace and transient happiness, leaving our hearts ultimately unsatisfied.
Our human hearts are created for eternity and therefore cannot be satisfied by temporal, transient earthly things, no matter how good they seem—be it money, glory, or success. Only the God who created us can truly satisfy our eternal souls and, more importantly, desires to save us, which is why He sent His only Son.
Jesus’ Birth and the Dual Nature of God’s Presence
The Christmas story, found in Matthew chapter 1, recounts the miraculous birth of Jesus. Mary, a virgin, conceived through the Holy Spirit. An angel appeared to Joseph, instructing him to name the child Jesus, “because he will save his people from their sins.” This fulfilled the prophecy that a virgin would conceive and bear a son named Emmanuel, meaning “God with us.”
The idea of “God with us” can be interpreted in two distinct ways: it can signify either judgment or salvation. For unforgiven sinners, God’s presence means judgment and death. However, for forgiven sinners, it means salvation and life. Therefore, whether God’s presence is good or bad news depends entirely on an individual’s standing with God.
Understanding God’s Holiness and Humanity’s Sinfulness
To fully grasp the implications of “God with us,” we must understand God’s nature: He is a holy and just God. This means God is too pure to be defiled by sin and, as a righteous God, will punish every sinner for their transgressions.
We often mistakenly define sinners as only those who break the law, exempting ourselves. However, the Bible reveals a stark truth: every single person is a sinner. Romans 3 states, “There is no one righteous, not even one… All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”
While we may perform good deeds, our human goodness is never sufficient for God’s holy standard. Isaiah 64 says our righteous acts are like “filthy rags” in God’s eyes. This is because God sees through our hearts, knowing that even our good deeds are often mixed with selfish desires, pride, or performed solely to avoid trouble, rather than out of pure altruism.
God’s holy standard is exceptionally high: James 2 states that whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it. This means even a tiny sin makes one a sinner. Furthermore, it is virtually impossible for any person to commit only one small sin in their lifetime, as we are prone to sin daily.
Some might question why a gracious God is so strict. This perspective arises because we are not as holy as God and tend to lower our standards for holiness when we cannot attain them. However, God is utterly holy and His criteria for holiness are absolute. Ultimately, God, the most holy Creator, is our final judge, and His standards—not our own—are what count.
Since no human can claim to have never sinned, all humans are sinners without exception. Thus, the truth of “God with us” becomes bad news if our sins remain unforgiven and unsettled.
Sin: The Root of All Problems and the Need for Salvation
Jesus came to save His people, specifically from sin. The Bible emphasizes sin because it is the root cause of all human problems, not merely earthly issues like financial difficulties or illness. Sin separates us from God, who is the source of all blessings, favor, protection, wisdom, and supply.
This separation from God leaves us weary, alone, and troubled in life. Sin hurts our relationship with God, ourselves, and others, introducing pain and suffering into the world. The gravest consequence of sin is eternal death, which is its just punishment.
Because sin acts as a barrier between God and humanity, salvation is essential, and Jesus was sent for this very purpose. While “the wages of sin is death,” God, in His mercy, offers that “the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Therefore, “God with us” is good news only if God comes to bear and forgive human sins, which is the core message of Christmas.
God For Us: Jesus’ Sacrifice and Righteousness
Christmas is about God solving the problem of sin, which only He could do. Jesus, being God Himself, was born as a human to save us. The amazing truth is that Jesus, Emmanuel, is not only “God with us” but also “God for us.” God, being almighty and just, could judge and punish sin, making it terrible if He were against us. However, His act of sending His Son to save sinners demonstrates that He is for us.
The first Christmas saw Jesus arrive not to bring judgment, but with a mission to suffer God’s punishment on behalf of mankind. Unlike Santa Claus, who gives gifts only to those on the “nice list,” Jesus’ coming signifies a gift that cannot be earned. The idea of earning salvation through good deeds is not good news, as our deeds are never good enough and cannot fully atone for sins, nor can they undo past wrongs.
No amount of good deeds can erase the harm caused by past wrongdoings; every sin still demands punishment. The good news of the Gospel is that God comes to us not because we are good, but because He is good. In His infinite goodness, God “so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” This contrasts sharply with other religions and the Santa Claus narrative, which often emphasize earning salvation.
Christ’s message is one of receiving, not earning. By putting faith in Jesus, who died the death we deserved, God forgives our sins and we are reconciled to Him. Jesus appeased God’s wrath, removing sin as a barrier between humanity and God, so God is now with us through Christ.
Jesus: The Unique God-Man and Conqueror of Death
Jesus is uniquely qualified to save sinners because He is the only God-man in the universe—fully God and fully human. His supernatural birth, born of a virgin through the Holy Spirit, is evidence of His divinity, setting Him apart from any other human.
It was crucial for Jesus to take on human nature because only then could He aptly represent mankind and bear the punishment for our sins as our substitute, just as an athlete must be a citizen to represent their country. If Jesus had remained solely God, He could not have been our representative.
Being God was equally vital, as all other humans are sinful. Jesus, being God, is sinless, qualifying Him as the perfect atoning sacrifice. We cannot offer a sinful sacrifice to God, but Jesus’ sinless atonement is perfectly acceptable.
Beyond His death, Jesus also lived a perfectly obedient life on Earth, never sinning despite temptation. When we place our faith in Him, God graciously credits Jesus’ perfect righteousness to us, making us acceptable to God. As 2 Corinthians 5:21 states, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”
Another essential characteristic of Jesus being God is that death cannot hold Him. After dying for our sins, Jesus resurrected, conquering death and offering us hope. Unlike other religious leaders who died and remained dead, Jesus’ resurrection proves His divine power and makes Him worthy of our trust and worship.
Hebrews 2:14–15 explains that Jesus shared in humanity to break the power of the devil, who holds the power of death, thereby freeing us from the slavery of the fear of death. In Christ, we no longer need to fear sin and death, but can have eternal life.
God’s Love: The Foundation of Salvation and Intimate Fellowship
The good news of Christ extends beyond salvation; it includes His desire for loving fellowship with us. God’s decision to save us stems from His deep and real love. Despite being a holy and just God who must punish sin, He is also a loving God with compassion for sinners, desiring their salvation.
Unlike a fireman who rescues a victim and then departs, God’s salvation is not merely a duty; He desires an intimate, loving relationship with us. This was God’s original purpose in creating mankind: to enjoy His love and have loving fellowship. He would not let sin hinder this close relationship.
Jesus came to us because God knew that in our sinful state, we would not and could not come to Him on our own. We are inclined to seek fulfillment in worldly pleasures, money, or success rather than God.
Even more wonderfully, God didn’t just come to us; He became one of us. Jesus is not only Emmanuel, God with us, but He is also human, experiencing our struggles. This act of God humbling Himself to our level, despite being utterly glorious and us being undeserving, profoundly demonstrates His great love. He didn’t send an angel, but His precious Son, personally.
God’s greatness is often perceived as His being above all, powerful, and conquering. However, His true greatness lies in His willingness to humble Himself and descend to our level, becoming part of His creation, all for the sake of love and intimate relationship. This ensures that Jesus, being one of us, is for us and not against us, empathizing with our sufferings, temptations, and pains.
With Jesus, Emmanuel, God is no longer distant but right here, with us, in both happy and difficult times. His presence empowers us with strength to navigate life’s circumstances and to obey Him. The greatest gift is not something God gives, but God Himself, because He is the source of all blessings. No human can be with us 24/7 or truly understand our hearts as God does. He knows our every situation, need, and struggle, and His love, power, protection, and wisdom are always with us.
Accepting God’s Invitation to Salvation
While God is with us and for us, whether He is truly for you depends on your status with Him. If sins remain unforgiven, we are still on the “bad side” of God, facing punishment. Only when reconciled to God and our sins are forgiven can we confidently say, “God is for me.”
Forgiveness cannot be attained by our own merits or good deeds, as God’s holy standard is absolute and cannot be moderated like human standards. Reconciliation with God is possible only through the perfect, sinless sacrifice of Jesus’ atonement.
Christmas signifies God’s immense love for sinners, prompting Jesus, who is God, to come to be with us and die for us. By receiving Jesus as Savior, we can enjoy His peace, comfort, strength, and wisdom right now on Earth—not just in Heaven—and eventually live with God forever.
God offers this free gift of salvation without discrimination to everyone who has heard the gospel. The crucial question is this: are you willing to accept God’s invitation to salvation through His precious Son, Jesus Christ? The best Christmas present is Jesus, Emmanuel—“God with us”—who came to save His people from their sins.
